Baked Ziti with Ricotta

Baked Ziti with Ricotta

1 lb. ziti or penne pasta

1 qt. good quality spaghetti sauce (1 large jar)

1 egg

1 (15-oz.) container ricotta or cottage cheese

2½ cups grated mozzarella cheese (8 oz), divided

¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese

Cook pasta as directed. Drain. Return pasta to empty pan, pour on spaghetti sauce, and stir to coat well. Beat the egg in a medium bowl. Add ricotta and 2¼ cups mozzarella to egg, and stir well. You can also put the egg and cottage cheese in a blender to mix and then stir into the mozzarella cheese. Spread half the pasta in a 9x13 inch pan. Spread ricotta mixture evenly on top. Spoon on remaining pasta, sprinkle on the remaining mozzarella, then the Parmesan cheese. Cover with foil and bake 40-45 minutes at 400° until hot and bubbly. Remove foil and bake 5 more minutes.

Tiffany's Notes:

This is such an easy recipe!  I decided to make it more hearty by adding one pound of cooked ground beef to the cheese layer--but I usually make the meatless version.  This time I also used farfalle pasta (bow tie).